Chapter 38: The Prayer Heard Round the World
I am an American and enjoy studying colonial and revolutionary history. I lived in Great Britain for almost three years. We traveled it from top to bottom, side to side. We enjoyed the history, culture, castles, cathedrals, museums, people, beauty, holidays, and pomp. We named our daughter who was born there Elizabeth after the queen. One day we went to Epsom Downs because we knew Queen Elizabeth was coming to open the races. And there she was, right in front of us, about twenty feet away. You may not believe this but she looked right at me and waved! When I knew I had to leave England, I wrote a note informing my friends. A sentiment I wrote is applicable here: "I know why they call this place Great Britain. It truly is a great place to live."
I hope wherever you live there is beauty and culture and holiday traditions to enjoy.
I hope wherever you live there is beauty and culture and holiday traditions to enjoy.
One of our family's favorite holidays is the Fourth of July. In 1887, Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote a poem to commemorate the Battle of Concord, one of the earliest battles of the Revolutionary War to celebrate the Fourth of July. This "Concord Hymn" is famous for the fourth line of the first stanza:
Truly, the war Americans fought to achieve independence changed the complete history of the world on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean and beyond.
In the spring of 1820, a simple prayer also changed the world. That prayer came because a fourteen-year-old boy read this verse in the Bible: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him” (James 1:5).
This verse of scripture powerfully affected this boy, Joseph Smith. He said he reflected on it again and again. He believed the Bible to be God’s word. He knew God would honor His promise to give him wisdom if he asked. The wisdom Joseph lacked was which church was right. He had attended camp revival meetings, listened to ministers from different churches, and read the Bible, but identifying the Church of Jesus Christ from among so many seemed impossible.
Where to find wisdom is still a problem today as many churches understand the Bible differently. Take baptism for example. Each church has its own beliefs and practices on the subject. While some say baptism is essential for salvation because Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (John 3:5), others claim baptism is not necessary because Jesus invited all to come to Him. “Come unto me… and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Some said baptism has to be by immersion; some say some sprinkled water is all that is needed; some said baptism has to be done in a moving body of water because Jesus was baptized in a river. And on and on it goes. Is a prayer necessary to accompany baptism? Is authority to baptize necessary? Who determines who is to be baptized and at what age? It would seem everyone needs to be baptized, but how could that be possible because billions have died without baptism?
All these questions about baptism, and baptism was only one of hundreds of topics upon which the churches differed. Joseph stated: “My object in going to inquire of the Lord was to know which of all the sects was right, that I might know which to join” (Joseph Smith—History 1:18). (It is interesting he was not seeking a true church but rather than the right church.)
It is the faith of more than sixteen million people around the globe that Joseph Smith’s first prayer opened the heavens in the spring of 1820. It is the faith of these men, women, and children that not only was the question about the correct way to baptize answered but also questions as broad as the purpose of life and what happens after death. Joseph Smith “established not only a new way of thinking but also a new mode of being. His teachings were not a difference of degree from the other religionists but rather a complete break with the organized religions of the day” (Chad Orton and William Slaughter, Joseph Smith’s America, Deseret Book Company, 2005, 11).
From 1820 to 1830, the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods were restored, the Book of Mormon translated and printed, and the Church of Jesus Christ again was organized on earth with six official members.
From 1830 to 1900, Church members were forced to move from New York to Pennsylvania back to New York, to Ohio, to Missouri, to Illinois, and to the Valley of the Great Salt Lake. Church membership grew, despite this adversity, from six to 284,000. Five temples were dedicated. In 1900, there were 529 wards/branches and 796 missionaries received mission calls.
From 1900 to 1950, membership rose to 1,111,000. Four more temples were dedicated, including the Salt Lake Temple that had been forty years in building. (It was dedicated April 6, 1893.) In 1950, there were 1,541 wards/branches and 3,015 missionaries called.
From 1950 to 1997, Church membership grew to 10,072,000 with forty-one new temples. In 1997, there were 20,776 wards/branches, and 33,726 missionaries called.
From 1997 to 2017, Church membership topped 16,000,000. There are 159 operating temples. The Book of Mormon can be read in 110 languages. Sixty-seven thousand missionaries are serving, and there are over thirty thousand congregations.
While the Fourth of July is an American holiday commemorating the shot heard 'round the world, Joseph Smith first prayer is an event the whole world can celebrate as the prayer heard 'round the world.
To adapt Emerson’s poem:
By the rude bridge that arched the flood
Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled,
Here once the embattled farmers stood
And fired the shot heard round the world.
Truly, the war Americans fought to achieve independence changed the complete history of the world on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean and beyond.
In the spring of 1820, a simple prayer also changed the world. That prayer came because a fourteen-year-old boy read this verse in the Bible: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him” (James 1:5).
This verse of scripture powerfully affected this boy, Joseph Smith. He said he reflected on it again and again. He believed the Bible to be God’s word. He knew God would honor His promise to give him wisdom if he asked. The wisdom Joseph lacked was which church was right. He had attended camp revival meetings, listened to ministers from different churches, and read the Bible, but identifying the Church of Jesus Christ from among so many seemed impossible.
Where to find wisdom is still a problem today as many churches understand the Bible differently. Take baptism for example. Each church has its own beliefs and practices on the subject. While some say baptism is essential for salvation because Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (John 3:5), others claim baptism is not necessary because Jesus invited all to come to Him. “Come unto me… and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Some said baptism has to be by immersion; some say some sprinkled water is all that is needed; some said baptism has to be done in a moving body of water because Jesus was baptized in a river. And on and on it goes. Is a prayer necessary to accompany baptism? Is authority to baptize necessary? Who determines who is to be baptized and at what age? It would seem everyone needs to be baptized, but how could that be possible because billions have died without baptism?
All these questions about baptism, and baptism was only one of hundreds of topics upon which the churches differed. Joseph stated: “My object in going to inquire of the Lord was to know which of all the sects was right, that I might know which to join” (Joseph Smith—History 1:18). (It is interesting he was not seeking a true church but rather than the right church.)
It is the faith of more than sixteen million people around the globe that Joseph Smith’s first prayer opened the heavens in the spring of 1820. It is the faith of these men, women, and children that not only was the question about the correct way to baptize answered but also questions as broad as the purpose of life and what happens after death. Joseph Smith “established not only a new way of thinking but also a new mode of being. His teachings were not a difference of degree from the other religionists but rather a complete break with the organized religions of the day” (Chad Orton and William Slaughter, Joseph Smith’s America, Deseret Book Company, 2005, 11).
From 1820 to 1830, the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods were restored, the Book of Mormon translated and printed, and the Church of Jesus Christ again was organized on earth with six official members.
From 1830 to 1900, Church members were forced to move from New York to Pennsylvania back to New York, to Ohio, to Missouri, to Illinois, and to the Valley of the Great Salt Lake. Church membership grew, despite this adversity, from six to 284,000. Five temples were dedicated. In 1900, there were 529 wards/branches and 796 missionaries received mission calls.
From 1900 to 1950, membership rose to 1,111,000. Four more temples were dedicated, including the Salt Lake Temple that had been forty years in building. (It was dedicated April 6, 1893.) In 1950, there were 1,541 wards/branches and 3,015 missionaries called.
From 1950 to 1997, Church membership grew to 10,072,000 with forty-one new temples. In 1997, there were 20,776 wards/branches, and 33,726 missionaries called.
From 1997 to 2017, Church membership topped 16,000,000. There are 159 operating temples. The Book of Mormon can be read in 110 languages. Sixty-seven thousand missionaries are serving, and there are over thirty thousand congregations.
While the Fourth of July is an American holiday commemorating the shot heard 'round the world, Joseph Smith first prayer is an event the whole world can celebrate as the prayer heard 'round the world.
To adapt Emerson’s poem:
In sacred grove that arched the sky
His words to spring’s sweet breeze unfurled
Here once a youth for wisdom cried
And spoke the prayer heard round the world.
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